iPad maker Foxconn could spend $12B on new plants in Brazil

Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. Ltd.-owned Foxconn is considering spending up to $12 billion on new facilities in Brazil that would help the electronics manufacturer’s clients avoid high import taxes on devices shipped to key markets from China and Taiwan. The move would also potentially help the manufacturer avoid some of its rising labor costs in China. The Brazilian government says it is currently studying Foxconn’s plans, and the country’s President Dilma Rousseff is overseas discussing this and other matters with Chinese President Hu Jintao. “You’ve got an ample range of investments that go from $300 to $400 million to $12 billion over 5 to 6 years in the case of Foxconn,” Rousseff told Reuters. “They’re proposing a partnership. They came to us and said we want to invest in Brazil.”Â Foxconn could start building devices like Apple’s iPad in Brazil by the end of November according to Aloizio Mercadente, Brazil’s science and technology minister.